Riverboat Discovery

A Ride & A Wedding

June 21, 2000

Some friends where married aboard the Riverboat Discovery II on the Chena River in Fairbanks. We got to partake in both the wedding ceremony and the tourist attraction. Made for a really nice evening under the Midnight Sun. Our first picture is of the boat. (pretty logical place to start, eh?)

Pushing off the dock I figured that a slow shutter speed was the most appropriate to capture the feel of the old boat chugging along. (1/15 sec exposure)

As we traveled down the Chena toward the Tanana (tan uh naw, not banana with a 't'), we saw many classic "Alaskan" yards. This one has most the traditional stuff, including an airplane with floats on the side.

I wasn't sure how this boat really fit into classic Alaskana, but it must somehow. Perhaps the free spirit of being able to place a 60 foot mobile home atop a barge is the deal. Guess this would look funny parked next to you on dry dock.

Now we are approaching the confluence of the Chena and Tanana rivers. Here we get into an interesting mixture of clear water and glacial fed, mud water.

Here is a close-up of the "wedding of two rivers." Note how the two types of water have a sharp dividing line, then come together.

As we headed down river we passed the largest boat, the Discovery III. This boat holds something like 700 folks.

On a funny note, the lady in charge of the cake had to hold on to it because the vibration of the boat chugging against the current threatened to flatten everything. Imagine this nice lady hollering "Find the Bride and Groom! We HAVE to cut the cake! Please don't fall, please don't fall...."

Let me get sappy for just a second. As we witnessed the marriage of the rivers above, we also witnessed the marriage of two friends. May their marriage make them as one, the same way the two rivers became one.